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European Car Sales of America, Inc. owner Peter Kilissanly sold cars to pay his way through college and spent eight years working at dealerships in Kansas. After spending more than three decades in the health care field, he returned to his passion – cars – and is presently the top and exclusive dealer of the cost and energy-efficient Global Electric Motorcars (GEMs) in Miami-Dade and Monroe counties. “What distinguishes us from other dealerships is that we are the franchise dealer for GEM and have expertise to assist customers with other models,” says the composed savvy businessman. Kilissanly’s company is a highly-reputable seller of new and used vehicles from the world’s finest manufacturers, including BMW, Mercedes Benz, Porsche, Land Rover, Ferrari, Jaguar, Maserati, Lamborghini, Rolls Royce and Bentley. Prior to purchasing European Car Sales of America in October 2007, the Lebanese-born entrepreneur presided over several health car organizations for more than 30 years. His brother-in-law Oscar Sicle works alongside him as head of the Service Department. “The specialty of Oscar, who trained with Mercedes Benz in Germany, is high-end European cars,” states Kilissanly. Kilissanly transformed European Car Sales of America into a full-fledged dealership and began offering repairs, restorations and upgrades. Eager to venture into renewable energy and reduce pollution caused by carbon footprints, Kilissanly became an authorized franchised dealer of GEM, a cutting-edge, low-speed electric vehicle that is owned by Chrysler and manufactured in Fargo, North Dakota. “I was interested in finding an environmentally-friendly car that is green and that meets a certain niche need in neighborhoods such as Key Biscayne,” he explain. “The GEM is probably the most sophisticated and advanced neighborhood electric vehicle.” The highly-appealing car, which has many of the same features as a regular vehicle, sits high up and has front wheel drive, front disc brakes and front body made of aluminum and molded plastic to prevent rusting. Kilissanly sells six different GEM models, which are available in white, green, blue, red, yellow, black, and silver and start at little over $8,000 for a two-seater. Four-seaters run from $11,000 to $12,500 and six-seaters from $13,000 to $15,000. “There are a lot of options and upgrades that you can do, and you can build your own GEM,” notes Kilissanly. European Car Sales of America, whose showroom is under construction, provides warranty and support after the sale. The GEM has a top speed of 25 mph and is a street legal car since it complies with the requirements to the speedier than 20 mph. “It follows the flow of the traffic and is authorized on public streets with speed limits of up to 35 mph” states Kilissanly. Safety-wise, the GEM meets the requirement that street-legal cars have a Department of Transportation-approved windshield and windshield wipers, headlights, taillights, a horn, reflectors, and a stop light when the driver brakes. In conformity with a street-legal car, the GEM also has a 17-digit Vehicle Identification Number and the three-point seatbelt (lap and shoulder, as opposed to lap-only). “You can’t drive it on a public road unless it’s properly registered, tagged, titled and insured,” points out Kilissanly. After obtaining his Masters of Public Health Care Administration from Wichita State University in 1977, he launched Physician Corporation of America a year later and managed the business through 1977. Kilissanly’s interest in safety stems from his expertise in health care management. As of January 2010, Chrysler has sold more than 40,000 GEM battery-electric vehicles, thus saving more than 19.5 million gallons of gasoline and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than 93,000 metric tons. The GEMs have made a splash on residential streets, in gated communities and in luxury eco-resorts such as Cap Cana in the Dominican Republic. “You can take it to the golf course, adjust it to low speed and rive it without damaging the turf; it is also very grass and sand-friendly.” indicates Kilissanly. He points out how indispensable the GEMs are their owners’ lives and shares anecdotes of clients whose mileage on their GEM is greater than all of their luxury cars combined. At European Car Sales of America, customers will find both brand new GEMs as well as used ones from the last 5 years. Customers desiring a special order GEM can expect to have it at their disposal in three to five weeks. “We can make it luxurious as you want based on the ability to make a special order,” points out Kilissanly. “You are not limited to what’s on the lot and can rest assured that your GEM car will be done per factory specifications as long as you own it. Kilissanly earned his stripes as a dealer by acquitting a personal connection with the manufacturer through a lengthy and rigorous licensing process through the Division of Motor Vehicles. “As a dealer, we have to meet all of the manufacturer’s requirements, such as advertising the vehicle and presenting it to customers,’ he explains. European Car Sales of America accommodates its clients by servicing not only their European models but also their relatives’ Japanese and American cars upon demand. “The technicians perform a 25-point inspection, checking everything related to safety such as brakes, power steering, fluid levels and hydraulics, along with the visual such as windshield and lights to ensure they are operational,” explains Kilissanly. The GEMs are under factory warranty for 12 months or 8,000 miles, and customers can purchase an extended warranty of 24 months or 16,000 miles. “Many of the parts arrive at the shop overnight or in two days, and our service personnel pick up the customer’s car, to fix it and bring it back in an expeditious manner,” he states. The pre-owned vehicles at European Car Sales of America range in price from $20,000 to $60,000. The company offers a variety of financing and leasing arrangements. . “We are very competitive with quality that appeals to the public and with price,” indicates Kilissanly. Consumers may schedule a test drive of any of the vehicles at the dealership, which is located at 3850 South Dixie Highway. European Car Sales of America is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information about the GEM, visit www.goautoelectric.com or contact Kilissanly at pkilissanly@bellsouth.net or 305-448-2989.
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